I usually like to talk about success. But today, I want to discuss failure. All of us experience failure at some point in our career. But for some, failure is merely a temporary setback; for others it's a recurring pattern and an ultimate career fate. It's this career failure that you can and must avoid. Although luck plays a role, the wrong workplace behavior is often a leading factor in career failure. Here are 10 behavior patterns that can cause your career to fail.

1. Not Keeping Your Skill Set Current

The business landscape is ever-changing and there is more demand for jobs than supply. Not staying on par with colleagues and those vying for your job is a death knell.

2. Not Delivering Results

It's all about accountability. Those who harbor a sense of entitlement for simply having put forth effort regardless of results fall by the wayside.

3. Not Communicating

Communicating via email doesn't replace the need to actually talk to people. If anything, automation and the internet have made personal communication even more important.

4. Thinking You're Irreplacable

There is no room for "divas" in the workplace. As soon as you convince yourself that you - and only you - can do the job "right," your star will surely fall.

5. Thinking You Know All the Answers

Socrates said the truly wise man is the one who recognizes his own ignorance and strives to correct it. Socrates's contempt for the know-it-all would have made him one excellent career counselor.

6. Surrounding Yourself with Brown Nosers

Successful people allow their ideas and schemes to be challenged and questioned.

7. Not Giving Credit to Others

As a manager, it's essential to give credit where credit is due. Those who take credit they don't deserve inevitably reap what they sow.

8. Failing to Self-Promote

Don't confuse crediting others with failing to get maximum mileage from your own achievements. I'm not talking about bragging. I simply mean making it a point of letting colleagues in your industry know about your own successes.

9. Not Seeking Advice

Those who fail to recognize their shortcomings are destined for the unemployment line. You can't do it all yourself. When you hit a roadblock, seek the advice and perspective of a respected friend, colleague or even a business coach.

10. Having No Life Plan

Last but certainly not least, successful people have a clear life plan. Many of them actually write their plan down. And they treat it as a living document that they revise in accordance with the lessons of experience.

Conclusion

While we have a right to expect equal opportunity, the fact of the matter is that all men-and women-are not created equal. Some of us are born smarter, more charismatic, energetic, etc. than others. But success is determined not just by the qualities with which nature endowed us but by how we behave in the workplace. Recognizing and correcting the above behavior patterns can thus go a long way toward helping you reach your career goals, whether in safety or any other endeavor.

Wishing you career SUCCESS,

Lauryn Franzoni
ExecuNet
www.execunet.com

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